Bainbridge’s professional bass angler Pam Martin-Wells is continuing to dominate the ladies’ bass fishing circuit.

Martin Wells, who is a member of both the Decatur County Sports Hall of Fame and the Legends of the Outdoors National Hall of Fame in Springville Tennessee, is bass fishing’s winningest female competitor and the only one to reach the top 25 in the annual Bassmaster Classic, against a field of the top male bass anglers in the country.

Martin-Wells is the women’s bass tour’s all time winning money leader and a five-time angler of the year.

Martin-Wells, who has won 19 professional bass fishing titles along with her five angler of the year awards, credits the late Jack Wingate, the sage of Lake Seminole, who ran a very successful outdoor camp for boys for many years, her parents Jimmie and Pat Martin and her husband Steven for avidly supporting her and her love for fishing and the outdoors.

In 1986 Martin-Wells observed a ladies angling event on Lake Seminole.

It was a tournament on the now defunct Bass N’Gal Bass Fishing Tournament circuit and she decided that she would try fishing tournament trails for money. She entered herself in every tournament she could the rest of the year.

The tournament season usually runs from January or February through October.

Martin-Wells says her success is due to her preparation and research.

She says she researches the Internet and magazines and exchanges conversation with other anglers very chance she gets.

“We talk about things like weather and water conditions and how the fish are reacting to them,” she said.